Burning Leaves in the Garden Is No Longer Allowed in Czechia

Autumn is here, and with it come piles of leaves and pruned branches. Anyone who used to deal with them by lighting a fire now risks a hefty fine. From 1 March 2025, a nationwide ban on burning garden waste applies throughout the Czech Republic, and a local ordinance can no longer get around it.

What the amendment to the Air Protection Act changed

Amendment No. 42/2025 Coll. removed a long-standing contradiction between the Air Protection Act and the Waste Act. Previously, a municipality could limit or ban the burning of dry plant material by local ordinance—and where it did not, burning was allowed. According to the Ministry of the Environment, however, plant material that a person gets rid of by burning is waste. Its disposal may only take place in a facility designated for that purpose, and garden biowaste must be handed over at the place designated by the municipality. The distance to the collection point is not a reason for a different procedure.

When a fire in the garden remains legal

So-called purpose-made burning is allowed. This applies exclusively to dry wood including branches that is not painted, stained or otherwise chemically treated, and that is used for toasting food, barbecuing, generating heat, a campfire, sitting with family, or a cultural event. The amount of wood must match the purpose. If you throw an entire heap of brushwood onto a small fire for sausages, you are burning waste.

You can never legally burn grass or leaves, because according to the ministry they are not suitable for purposeful use. It is also unlawful to burn wood solely to obtain ash for fertilising. Exceptions apply only to forest owners under the Forest Act and in the case of an ordered extraordinary plant-health measure.

What fines you could face

Under the Air Protection Act, an individual can be fined up to CZK 50,000. The Waste Act allows a fine of up to CZK 1,000,000 for handling waste outside a designated facility. Both offences are dealt with by the municipal authority of a municipality with extended powers. For large-area burning of vegetation, the Fire Protection Act provides for an additional fine of up to CZK 25,000.

Notifying the fire brigade is not permission

Private individuals are not required to report a fire, but the fire service still recommends doing so via the form at paleni.izscr.cz. Reporting serves only for records so they do not respond unnecessarily, and it does not legalise the burning of waste in any way. A person over 18 must be present at the fire at all times, and you should not burn during strong winds.

What to do if smoke from a neighbour is bothering you

Start with a calm conversation—many people still do not know about the change in the law. If your neighbour continues burning leaves, grass, or whole heaps of branches, you can contact the environmental department of the municipality with extended powers, which handles these offences.

You are also protected by the Civil Code. Under Section 1013, an owner must refrain from anything that causes smoke to enter a neighbouring property to a degree disproportionate to local conditions and that substantially restricts its normal use. If the nuisance is repeated, you can file a neighbour dispute claim. If the fire gets out of control, call 150 or 112 immediately.

Garden waste belongs in the compost, the chipper, the brown bin, or at the recycling centre—not on the fire.

Source: MŽP, Act No. 201/2012 Coll., on air protection, as amended by Act No. 42/2025 Coll., Act No. 541/2020 Coll., on waste, Act No. 89/2012 Coll., Civil Code, Section 1013, Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic, Firefighters advise, Pestrazahrada.cz